Diving Deep Into the Senior Bowl

Brad Keller

02/06/2011

Brad Keller kept a close eye on the Senior Bowl, and takes a long look at the performers that are the best fits for the Colts.

The Colts need help on both the offensive and defensive line. This
year's draft is deep in both of those areas and the Senior Bowl was a reflection
of that talent in the trenches on both sides of the ball. The most
impressive offensive tackle in my eyes was Derrick Sherrod of Mississippi State.

Sherrod is a huge man with nimble feet and tremendous power. He looked
smooth in pass protection and did a fairly good job of brutalizing his man on
every running play. But, the fact that Sherrod has a great deal of
potential and could be a franchise left tackle is also not a secret. He is
considered to be a top-15 prospect and should be long gone by the time the Colts
pick. If they have a chance to trade up a couple of spots or if he's there
when they pick at 22nd overall, they should take him and consider themselves
lucky.

The second-best performer at offensive tackle was also on the South squad,
despite early reviews that most of the talent was on the North sidelines.
James Carpenter of Alabama handled Purdue's Ryan Kerrigan in pass protection and
sealed off the edge on running plays. He looked solid, but played only
briefly, giving way to Sherrod for most of the game. He is currently rated
as a third- or fourth-round prospect, but has ideal size at 6-foot-5 and 313
pounds and his performance at the Senior Bowl will only help his draft grade.

If Sherrod is snapped up in the first round before Indianapolis gets a shot at
him, Carpenter would be a very good consolation prize in the second or third
round.

At guard, the best player I observed was Florida State guard Rodney Hudson.
He was very aggressive in the running game and finished a number of plays by
blocking the man assigned to him to the ground, then releasing to the second
level and taking on a linebacker or safety. He is considered to be
undersized at 6-foot-3 and 291 pounds, but could easily support another 15
pounds on his frame, especially if those extra pounds were muscle.

Though
Hudson excelled in the running game, it was difficult to gauge his pass blocking
and recognition skills, since the North defense was prohibited from blitzing or
running stunts on the defensive line. When he did pass block, Hudson
usually had center help, which made a thorough assessment of his pass blocking
skills impossible. Kyle DeVan and Mike Pollak both struggled in pass
protection in 2010, so it will be vitally important for whoever the Colts draft
to be proficient in this area right out of school. Hudson currently has a
third-round grade, which sounds about right. Indianapolis needs to invest
in linemen early and often, so Hudson would be a good pick-up.

Defensive tackle Terrell McClain parlayed a strong showing in the East-West
Shrine game into an appearance in Saturday's game. He didn't look
overwhelmed or star struck, but he also didn't do anything to separate himself
from the pack. Sione Fua showed a strong push in both run defense and in
the passing game and the Stanford tackle should get plenty of second looks from
a number of teams at the Combine. He's currently rated in the fourth or
fifth round, but that ranking is likely to change in the next few months, most
likely with Fua being selected in the second or third round. He would
still represent good value for the Colts if taken there. He looked like a
first round player on Saturday, so getting him in the second or third round
would be a bargain.

Notre Dame tackle Ian Williams also showed some
flashes of pass rushing ability and is another prospect to keep an eye on.
He fits the mold of what Indianapolis is moving to at the position and has
plenty of upside as a pass rusher.

Running back Derrick Locke of Kentucky is an intriguing prospect in that he
ran much bigger than he is — at 5-foot-8 and 186 pounds, scouts question his
ability to withstand the punishment he will receive at the NFL level — is
projected to go in the sixth or seventh round, and also returns kicks. He
had only one punt return in college, but had extensive kick returning experience
in his four years with the Wildcats, with two kickoff returns for touchdowns.
The Colts are in dire need of a talent injection in the return game and Locke,
if he can also step in at running back to give Joseph Addai and Donald Brown a
breather, would be just that. He also caught 95 passes in 41 appearances,
which means all he needs to learn how to do is pass protect and he would fit
right in the Indianapolis backfield.

Louisville tailback Bilal Powell also ran
well and with authority, gaining several yards after contact, but appeared to
run too upright and looked to be too much of a slashing, one-cut back to catch
on with the Colts.

Kerrigan was the most highly-touted defensive end prospect heading into this
game, but the player that impressed me the most was Sam Acho of Texas.
He's built like Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis, powerfully built and lower to
the ground and reminded me of the Pro Bowl duo when he swam inside first round
left tackle Nate Solder and wound up with a strip sack. Acho certainly
opened some eyes on Saturday and continue to impress scouts with solid workout
numbers at the Combine, so it is entirely possible that he could improve on his
current draft stock, which has him projected in the late second or early third
round.

Mike Mayock repeatedly praised North Carolina cornerback Kendric Burney as an
ideal Cover 2 guy. Burney showed an ability to read, react, and tackle and
is not undersized at 5-foot-9 and 186 pounds to play the position for
Indianapolis. He is currently rated as a fifth-round prospect, but is on
the rise after his performance on Saturday. The good news for Burney's
draft stock — but the bad news for the Colts — is that his workout numbers at
the Combine and his Pro Day will only help him between now and the end of April.
Also of note is that he was a standout on special teams and showed solid
tackling skills in space, which were both areas of concern for Indianapolis last
season.

Stanford corner Richard Sherman is a converted wide receiver that was invited
to the Senior Bowl late. He adjusted well and kept the play in front of
him, showing advanced tackling skills for someone so new to the position.
He may actually be too big to play cornerback for the Colts at 6-foot-2 and 192
pounds, but he otherwise fits the mold, especially considering he appears to be
a late round or priority free agent at this point.

Miami's Leonard Hankerson was the star of the game at receiver and showed
strong route recognition and execution on his touchdown reception from Christian Ponder. The bulk of his yards, though, came on a 49-yard jump ball where
the cornerback didn't get turned around in time and come back for the ball.
Hankerson is a good athlete that knows how to use his size advantage and has
above average hands, but seems to fit the mold of Roy Hall and Taj Smith: An
athlete that would work in most systems, but probably does not have the
precision to play the position for Indianapolis.

Jeremy Kerley of TCU and Vincent Brown of San Diego State fit the mold of
Pierre Garcon and Austin Collie, in that both players were productive in
college, are around six feet tall, and are more accomplished route runners that
rely on craft rather than ability. Brown ran some of the best routes in
the game and made some tough catches in front of an on-coming safety, which he
will certainly be required to do as a member of the Colts.

Kerley has
extensive experience returning kicks and punts, with 94 career punt returns and
37 kickoff returns at TCU, though he was not involved in the return game on
Saturday. If Collie and Anthony Gonzalez come back healthy for
Indianapolis, the fifth receiver on this team will need to have another skill.
Kerley certainly has that, as well as experience in the running game, as he was
used in a number of different ways in college.

The issue with Kerley is
that, when he was placed in the slot, he seemed to make moves at the line to
defeat press coverage even though there was no press coverage allowed in the
game. This kind of wasted motion at the snap, should it be revealed as a
tick and a shortcoming in Kerley's game, could disrupt the timing of the
Indianapolis passing game, which is not acceptable and would either push him
down the depth chart or off the roster.

Dwayne Harris of East Carolina was the most impressive punt returner by far,
but did not see any snaps on offense. But, Harris had 268 receptions for
3,001 yards and 20 touchdowns in his four seasons at ECU in addition to his
stellar return numbers, which included three kickoff returns for scores.
If he shows the kind of precision and execution on film that the Colts are
looking for in a receiver, then he would make a welcome addition as a fifth
receiver that can also contribute significantly in the return game.